Improvement in mowing-machines



` UNITED STATES4 v PATENT trice.

FISK" RUSSELL, oF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS.

IMPROVEMENT IN lvlowlNG-MACHINES.

`Specification forming part of Letters Patent N0. 12,463, dated February 27, 1855.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FISK RUSSELL, of Boston, in the county of Suffolk and State of Massachusetts, have invented a new and useful Machine for Mowing Grass; land I do hereby declare that the same is fully described and represented in the following specification and the accompanying drawings, letters, figures,

and references thereof. y

In 4the said drawings, Figure l denotes a top view ofthe machine. Fig. 2-is a side elevation ot it,'talen on that Vside on which the primary or driving Wheel is situated. Fig. 3 is an-ele vation ot' the opposite side of it. Fig. et is a lon gitudinalsection of the knife or cutter-bar, and exhibits the arrangement of the knives and the mannerin which they are applied thereto. Fig. 5 is a transverse sectional view of the drivin g-cam and the bifurcated Vrocker-frame and lever thereof'. Fig. 6 is a transverse section of the cutter-bar and its cutters, the same being made to exhibit a sectional view of one of the guard-teeth; Fig. 7 is atop viewot' one of the knives as separated from the machine.

In the sald drawings, A represents a carriage or main rectangularframe, supported ou two Wheels,B C, the former being a driving as well as a supporting wheel-that is to Say, its periphery is armed With a Series of projections or lteeth, cca, extended from it, as in the wheels of the Well-known reapingmachines. .This wheel carries on the inner surface of its rim an internal gear, b, into Which a pinion, D, atxed to one end of a driving-shaft, E, is made to engage.' This drivngfshaft extends across the frame and issupported in boxes, as seen at c c c, and carries a cam-wheel, F. The axis of the secondary wheel, C, is notdisposed in line with that ot' the primary wheel, B, but is ar ranged aside from the same, and so that the secondary wheel shall be disposed entirely on one side of the drivingor cam shaft, it being understood that theV two wheels are made ot' the same or about the same diameter.

By arranging the Wheel C with respect to the Wheel B as seen in the drawings, I am enabled not only to obtain the advantage of the second Wheel, C, to support the frame-work near to the cutters, but also to have it of the same diameter as the wheel B, and to gain the very important advantage ot' employing the shaft E and cam-Wheel F without any interference of the Wheel C with them.

ver, Gr, which works on a fulcrum at H.

It will readily be seen that if the axis ofthe wheel/G were placed in a straight line with that of the wheel B the wheel G, made of the same diameter of the Wheel B, could not be used, `as it would extend into the path ofthe shaft E and preventsuch shaft from being employed to carry motion from Vthe driving-w heel. It may besaid that the Wheel G could be made with its diameter smaller than thatot the Wheel B and `arranged with its axis below that ot'4 such wheel; but under such circumstances not only would its axle be likely to interfere With the operations of the inclined lever G, but owing to the decreased diameter ot' the wheel an increase of the power of draft would naturally result.

In machines ot' this character so much ofthe strength of animals employed to draw them over the ground is required to p ut and maintain their operative mechanism in action that it becomes necessary to lessen as much as posn sible the friction ot' the wheels -or their tendency to increase the power otl draft. Thus it will be seen that important advantages are gained by the peculiar arrangement of the secondary supporting-wheel with respect to the driving-wheel and the drivingshat't.

The cam is so formed as to impart a reciprocating vibrating movement to an inclined le- The said lever carries a bit'urcated rocker-frame, I, that is made to turn in one end ot' the lever and to clasp the serpentine edge of the eam- Wheel, and to carry two friction-rollers, d c,

they being placed on oppositesides ofthe camwheel. By means ofthe rocker-frame the camwheel is enabled to` operate the lever to much better advantage and with less noise and friction thanwould be the case were the lever applied to the cam by'means of a stationaryfork or its equivalent. Besides this, another advantage results from the peculiar application or use of a rocker-frame, the Same being that it accommodates itself1 to the curves of the cam and so as to prevent improper lateral strain on the lever. The lower end of the le ver extendslintoa mortise made in a long slidebar, K, that is supporlcd so as to slide ina groove formed in the cutter-bar L, that is fastened to and extends from a holdiast, M, asseen in the drawings, the said holdfast being a bent piece ot' metal formed and made to extend down therefrom, as seen in Fig. 3. The

said cutter-bar has projected from it a series ot' guard or hook teeth, as seen at N N N, between each two of which a movable oscillating tooth, O, is made to play, the said tooth being made to turn horizontally upon a center pin or fulcrum, f, extended upward from the cutterbar. In the construction of these teeth they are formed triangular, or approximating thereto, in shape, and two of them are made to eX- tend in opposite directions from onecommon center plate or bar, g, as seen in the drawings. Each of these teeth has a round hole, h, formed through it, each hole being at an equal distance from the hole i of the central plate. The lever-teeth so formed are arranged on the cutter-bar as seen in the drawings, their central holes being supported on stationary fulcra or pins fff', while the back or rearmost holes are made respectively to receive pins 7c k k, extending upward i'rom the slide-bar K. When the teeth are so arranged they maybe covered by a cap-plate, P, made to extend partially over them, as seen in the drawings. B v the reciprocating longitudinal movement of the slide-bar each ofthe cutting-teeth directly between each two of the guard-teeth will have imparted to it an oscillating movement, such as will not only cause it to cut with a guardtooth, like a common pair of scissors, but with a slight drawing stroke, such as will impart to it a great advantage in severinggrass. Should any one ofthe teeth become dulled orinjured, it maybe removed from its fulcrum and turned around over the sliding bar, so as to bring its fellow-tooth into its place. The fellow tooth, having been placed under the cap-plate of the cutter-bar, will have been protected from injury by such cap-plate.V

To the outer end of the cutter-bar I affix a raking-board, Q, and I construct such rakinghoard in the following manner, the object of it being to move the cut grass away from 'the standing grass. Such board is made in two vindependent parts, Z m, each of which is aflxed to the raking or cutting bar, the back board being applied thereto by aspring, n, which allows it to play up and down and slide on the front board while the latter is stationary.

I apply to the main frame of the machine,

or I arrange and combine with the cutter-bar' the knife-bar holdfast to travel in. Without theapplication ofthe raking-boardinthe abovedescribed manner such path would be likely to be obstructed by the cut grass or grain, and to an extent disadvantageons to the correct operation of the machine.

Having thus described myinvention, what I claim is as follows. I do not claim the supporting ofthe trame ot' a mowing-machine on two or more wheels; but what I do claim,when two wheels only are employed for the support ot' such frame, is the above-speciied arrangement of the secondary supporting-wheel with respect to the main driving and supporting wheel and the driving-shaft, such arrangement consisting in placing the axis ofthe secondary supporting-wheel aside of and not in line with that of the primary wheel and disposing the secondary wheel back of or on one side of the driving-shaft, so as to operate essentially as described.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my signature thii29th day of August, A. D. 1854.

FISK RUSSELL.

Witnesses:

R. H. EDDY, F. P. HALE, Jr. 

